By Janis Jibrin, RD
“But isn’t it really time-consuming and expensive to eat healthily?” is a question I hear often. Yes, if you want it to be! But healthy and tasty meal can actually be less expensive, if you do it right. This chickpea (garbanzo bean) and tomato stew is the perfect case-in-point. I just made it for lunch in 5 minutes flat.
You can tell from the ingredient shot that I’ve been shopping at Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s (the great feta) recently! By using store brands, I save big on this already low-cost meal.
Here’s how to do it yourself:
Five Minute Chickpea, Tomato, Cilantro and Feta Stew
Serves 2 to 3
Ingredients:
1 – 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 – 2 cloves of garlic, cut in half
1, 15-ounce can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), preferably no more than 40 mg sodium per half cup, drained
1, 15-ounce can tomatoes, diced, or whole and chopped (Preferably no-salt-added–I love the fire-roasted type)
¼ cup chopped cilantro, parsley or basil
¼ cup crumbled feta cheese
pepper to taste
1. Heat a medium-sized heavy-bottomed skillet (I use a 9-inch cast iron)
2. Add olive oil and garlic
3. Add chickpeas and the tomatoes
4. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes
5. Top with fresh herbs and feta, sprinkle with pepper and serve
Nutrition Analysis for 1/2 of recipe (using 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil and no salt added tomatoes):
Calories: 444
Protein: 19 g
Carbohydrate: 57 g
Dietary Fiber: 13 g
Total Sugars: 10 g
Total Fat: 14 g
Saturated Fat: 3.7 g
Cholesterol: 13 mg
Calcium: 210 mg
Magnesium: 119 mg
Potassium: 1,329 mg
Sodium: 282 mg
